City Escape
by ForsakenDream
Summary: Another TVirus Outbreak. Another city in ruins. A teenage girl recieves a call telling her to meet at the local mall. Friends will be reunited and blood will be shed. But can she make it out alive? Please R & R!
1. The Beginning

"We're sorry to inform you that this is our stations last broadcast.."

A teenage girl around her mid-teens stared at the television from her spot on the edge of her small, twin sized bed. Her long black hair was mussed and ruffled, as if she hadn't cared to fix it up in days. Dark chocolate brown eyes remained fixated on the small 19" inch screen propped onto her tall metal shelf.

"From CBC news, this is Brock Heralds signing off. Stay safe, friends," And with that, the cleanly cut television reporter was lost in a haze of static.

Brushing a strand of her stray bangs from her eyes, Shayla Hansen pushed up from her seat on the bed and looked upwards for a long moment. She had been cooped up in her room for God knows how long, the television the only company she kept. Her father had barricaded her into the small bedroom days before with sparse supplies, trying to ensure her safety. If only he had insured his own. The screams of her family hung over her like a thick cloud, unwilling to let go. She wasn't even sure how long ago it was when she heard those terrifying cries of pain and agony.

"..What to do, what to do..," A mutter escaped her dry lips, her trembling hands hanging unenthusiastically at her sides. Trying to get out of the room by the door was hopeless; her father had barricaded her in good. Luckily, it was so well blocked off that even the undead couldn't manage to get in. For how much longer, Shayla was unsure. If they were hungry enough, she was certain they would manage their way in.

It had been a long time since she had felt a single emotion, but Shayla could feel sadness beginning to build in her gut. Tears had begun to well in her eyes, a familiar tightening overcoming her chest. She hated the fact that was she was alone while the world seemed to be crumbling outside the four walls she was trapped within. Her knees buckled under her and there she sat, hunched over, sobs pushing past her shapely lips. The young lass was shaken from her weary moment as her small, silver cell phone burst into the polyphonic ring tone of, "First Date" by Blink 182.

"..Huh?" Raising her bleary eyes, Shayla remained where she was. Who could possibly be calling? She couldn't think up a possibility, but she was certain the call must be important. That, or a wrong number. Chuckling to herself, she reached over to the pile of books she had scattered on her floor, digging out the cell phone from under the novel "Battle Royale". Staring at the bright blue numbers on her caller ID screen, Shayla tilted her head. It was a number she didn't recognize.

As soon as she opened the small flip-phone, the cheerful tune of her ringtone stopped and she brought the device to her ear, "Hel-" She cleared her throat, "Hello?"

"Shay-" Shayla grimaced at the loud static that poured from the earpiece. Holding the phone closer to her ear, she tried to listen to what the person on the other end was trying to say, "Shayla... it's-" Another loud burst of static overtook the voice. From what she could tell, the voice was male with an accent.

"Hello? I.. I can't hear you properly! Who is this?" Her heart had begun to race. Somebody who knew her was contacting her. That meant there were survivors!

"Sh...It's Br..!" The voice sounded completely unfamiliar to her, yet she had a feeling that she knew this person. Pushing her thumb against the volume button on the side of her phone, she closed her eyes and tried to hear anything through the static.

The voice continued under the crackling static, "..Meet...ASAP...derry.. mall!"

That was all Shayla could make out before the line was nothing but static. Waiting a few more moments, it was all for not as the line went dead. She sat in silence for a long time with the phone to her ear. It took her awhile to make sense of the message, but the conclusion she made seemed accurate.

"Meet ASAP at Londonderry Mall." The raven haired teen nodded to herself, her eyes instantly looking towards her window.

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"Well.. here we are." Shayla spoke to herself softly, standing before the entrance of the desolate mall. It was unnerving to see it so quiet, not a soul to be heard. It had taken her over an hour to reach the mall, but she thought the long and dangerous trek would be worth it. To her suprise, the walk was quite uneventful. She had only spotted a few of the creatures shambling about, and when they noticed her presence, they were far too slow to catch up, anyways. Shayla was scared, that was for sure, but she wasn't about to let her fear stop her from reaching other survivors.

Clutching her cell phone in her small hand, she thought of calling whoever had contacted her. Flipping her phone open, it beeped to her dismay. The single bar at the top left corner of her LCD screen told her that reception was terrible where she stood, "Ah well.. I suppose I could just go in and take a look inside.."

She closed the space there was between her small form ( 5'2" tall to be exact ) and the doors, the metal handle cold against her hand. Just as she pulled the heavy door open, a growl sounded from somewhere behind her. Afraid to turn around, she quickly pushed her way past the only slightly open door, her eyes closed tightly. The sound of the door clicking shut was relieving, but it was followed by the sound of something heavy colliding into the thick glass of the door. Positive that she was safe behind the door, she very slowly turned to face whatever lay ahead of her.

"..Holy shit!" Was all she managed to blurt out, stumbling back instantly from the creature that stared at her from behind the glass. It's eyes were a milky white, blood clouded into the iris of its right. Between it's eyes was an elongated snout covered in dried blood. From what Shayla could make out, it was some fort of dog. Probably a Doberman. She didn't really give two shits about what breed it was, she just wanted to get far away from it. Turning back around, she began to walk down the long stretch of mall ahead of her, leaving the creature behind.

Eerie. That was an understatment for the mall at this point. Only a few lights could be seen flickering in some of the stores, racks of clothing and shelves knocked over everywhere. Though it was a complete mess, she couldn't find any signs of life. Had she misinterpreted the call she had recieved? She certainly hoped not because she didn't want to be stuck in such a creepy place and there was no way she was going back outside with that dog wandering about. For all she knew, there could be more out there. Waiting for her.

"..Well.. damnit.", Shayla lowered her head and exhaled a long sigh. Instead of being stuck in her small, cramped and relatively safe room, she was now in a cavernous, dark and dangerously open space. What was she to do if this place had a bunch of 'them' wandering about? Stuck in the dimly lit mall, all Shayla could do was find out. Even though many other worries plagued her mind, she continued to come full circle to the same question.

Who was on the other end of the phone?

"Bryan!" Came a loud, female voice echoing through the mall, "I don't think it would be a genius plan to go outside, you dolt!"

Shayla raised her gaze from the bland and uninteresting tiled floor, her pupils dialating at the sound of another human's voice. She remained completely silent, hoping to locate where the voice was coming from. She didn't want to run screaming to someone, in case they were unfriendly.

Just as she anticipated, the voice came again, "Bryan! Damnit, don't go out there!"

In reply, a male voice could be heard, "I just want to do a quick sweep around the building. Not all doors are unlocked here, Sierra. There could be other survivors out there."

Shayla stood there and closed her eyes, concentrating on the male's voice. He had quite the Irish accent, and she was certain that it was the same guy who had phoned her. It took her a long while, but it finally hit her. Bryan and Sierra.

"Dameon and Jill.." She spoke in utter disbelief, her eyes snapping open. Could it possibly be? Bryan Gallagher and Sierra Blackburne were two of her online friends who's aliases were Dameon Addinell and Jill Valentine, both whom she was quite close with. Sierra was from the United States, while Bryan was from Ireland.

"..I still don't like the idea!" Sierra yelled, her voice containing both worry and irritation. It sounded like she was shouting from somewhere in the upper level.

After a long moment, Bryan answered back, his Irish accented voice echoing, "I'll be fine. Just keep your eyes and ears open, Sierra.. I need to know if she arrives!"

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	2. Amy's Story

Meat. That was all she had become to him.

Amy Kovatch stumbled across the parking lot of Londonderry mall, her tear stained face unnusually pale. It had been hours since her friend Simon, the last survivor of the Performing Arts class ( besides her, of course ), had attacked her. She couldn't make sense of the situation. Everyone was dead and she couldn't grasp the concept of why.

"..Why.. wh-y Simon..?", Was all she could manage to say before bursting into tears, her shaking hands moving up to her strange green eyes. Everything had turned upside down within the short time span of two weeks and it was too much for her. She had been in her usual Performing Arts meeting when one of her classmates began to act abnormally. Before she knew it, Simon and her had sought out safety in the theater's loft. Days had passed and eventually Simon began to act strangely. He seemed terribly sick. His symptoms were identical to all the others', but Amy refused to believe that he was going to turn into one of them. She wouldn't accept such a thing.

"..I'm so sorry.. so.. so sorry.." Amy whispered shakily, trying to compose herself. The situation was dire and she knew she couldn't just stand out in the open like she was. Despite the fact that she was an open target for the many creatures that lurked the streets, she couldn't help but continue to cry. There was nothing left for her to do. Everyone she knew was dead. Simon, the one boy who could make her smile.. was dead. Her dad was dead, as well as her mother and sister. For all she knew, her best friend was probably dead, too. 

Amy was ready to give up on the entire situation when a voice snapped her back to reality, "Oi, you over there! Watch out!"

Raising her head, Amy could barely make out the form of a blonde guy running towards her ( she hadn't worn glasses in ages, despite the act that she needed them ), "..Huh?"

Before she could utter another word, the entire world distorted in one quick blur and Amy hit the ground hard. Amy couldn't make sense of what just happened, nor did she want to. Her one and only goal was to get the hell away. She scrambled to her hands and knees, but a blood curdling growl stopped her in her tracks. Turning her head very slowly, she stared at the creature loomed so closely. It was a dog. Well, what was left of one.

"What are you doing! RUN!", Came the voice of the boy who had tried to warn her. Amy didn't hear him, though, she was fixated on the Cerberus. Uttering a small growl in its sinewy throat, the undead canine lunged at her. Screaming like there was no tomorrow, Amy raised her hands to its snapping muzzle, trying to hold it bay. She didn't know what good it would do, but she wasn't about to let it use her as a damn chew toy. Its claws dug painfully against her shoulders causing her to cry out in pain, her hands keeping a firm grasp around its muzzle.

"Hold as still as you can! I'm taking it down!", the boy ordered sharply, an Irish accent obvious. He was standing approximately five feet away now, a gun held in his pale hands tightly. It was a standard issue 9 mm Beretta, to be exact. Amy froze on the spot, holding still as a statue despite the raging creature ontop of her. With one defening bang, the dog twitched numerous times and ceased moving. 

"Oh..oh my God.." Amy's voice wavered as she burst into tears again, pushing the heavy remains of the canine off of her. Everything took on a completely new reality. In only seconds, the last week of events rushed through her already dazed mind. The first attack. The screaming and shouting. Ian completely losing his mind and threatening to kill her. Simon following her up the ladder to the loft. The long and terrible silence. Then of course.. Simon becoming one of them, too. After that, there was nothing. Everything faded away to black. Bryan Gallagher's voice faded, as well, and for awhile.. Amy was lost to the world. Finally, she could have her peace.

"Damn.." Bryan spoke softly, tucking the sleek, black handgun into the holster at his waist. He kneeled down and slipped his arms under the unconcious girl, lifting her off the ground and carefully placing her over his right shoulder. It certainly wasn't the most gentlemanly way to carry a woman, but it was easier. Besides, being the perfect gentleman wasn't his concern at the moment. Sighing, the blue eyed Irishman looked around his surroundings, scanning for any other dangers. He decided on taking the front entrance rather than the way he had come out at the far west side of the building. Shifting Amy's weight a bit, Bryan turned and made his way across the vast and deserted parking lot. As he neared the large glass doors, his foot came into contact with something, causing him to stumble. He heard a muted ting as the object hit the door. To his suprise, a small, silver cell phone lay against the door.

"What do we have here?", He spoke curiously, kneeling down slowly and picking up the chilled object in his hand. He used his thumb to flip it open and the LCD screen shone brightly. His palm pressed up against the back of the phone, and he noted a small dent. Turning the cellphone over in his hand, he noticed some of the color still chipping away. He guessed someone had dropped it in one hell of a rush.

Bryan shrugged to himself and pocketed the phone, pulling open the door to the mall.


End file.
